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Tennessee Titans News & Rumors

Titans Place S Amani Hooker On IR

December 22nd, 2023 at 3:45pm CST by Adam La Rose

Amani Hooker‘s 2023 season has come to an end. Not long after being ruled out for Week 16, the Titans placed the veteran safety on injured reserve on Friday.

Hooker played every snap in Tennessee’s loss to Houston last week, but a knee injury has kept him out of practice over the past several days. As a result, he will be placed on IR, a move which requires at least a four-week absence. With Tennessee out of contention for the postseason, Hooker will not return to the field until 2024.

The news marks an unfortunate end for the 25-year-old, who has been a mainstay in the Titans’ secondary since 2021. He landed a three-year extension last September, a deal which has him on the books through 2025. Hooker was limited to just nine games in 2022, but he had managed to rebound from a health standpoint this past year. He also set new career high in tackles with 85 and tackles for loss with three.

The former fourth-rounder also had one interception, seven pass deflections and a forced fumble this season. That ball production will be difficult to replace for the Titans as they close out a disappointing campaign. In the absence of Hooker (who logged a 98% snap share on defense), the team will likely move forward with Elijah Molden and Terrell Edmunds at the safety spot. The former made his return from injured reserve in Week 15, while the latter has primarily been used on special teams since arriving in a trade with the Eagles.

To fill Hooker’s roster spot, the Titans signed defensive lineman Marlon Davidson from the practice squad. Davidson had been a gameday elevation twice this season, meaning he would have needed to join the 53-man roster after the team’s next game if they intended to continue giving him playing time. Now, the former second-rounder will get further looks as he attempts to play his way into a deal for 2024.

Titans CB Caleb Farley Will Not Return In 2023

December 22nd, 2023 at 1:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

DECEMBER 22: When speaking to the media on Friday, head coach Mike Vrabel acknowledged (via ESPN’s Turron Davenport) that while Farley has “worked hard” to return to the lineup, he will not play in 2023. Having been eliminated from postseason contention last week, the Titans will take the cautious approach in this situation. Farley will enter 2024 as a pending free agent presuming Tennessee declines his fifth-year option, making the campaign one with major financial implications for him.

DECEMBER 20: Injuries have defined Caleb Farley‘s NFL career, and the former first-round pick is on the verge of missing an entire season. But the Titans can at least begin reevaluating the third-year cornerback in practice.

Stationed on the reserve/PUP list for nearly four months, Farley returned to practice for the Titans on Wednesday, TitanInsider.com’s Terry McCormick tweets. Farley’s latest back surgery, which took place in December 2022, sidelined him throughout the offseason and for the regular season’s first 15 weeks.

Farley has suffered two ACL tears — one during his freshman year at Virginia Tech, the other in 2021 — and has undergone three back surgeries since 2019. Farley underwent a surgery to address a 2019 back injury, and while he played 10 games that season to vault himself onto the first-round radar, he needed a microdiscectomy in March 2021. Farley has missed 36 NFL games since going off the 2021 draft board 22nd overall.

It is difficult to gauge Farley’s talent due to the injury struggles that have plagued him since his Virginia Tech days, but the Titans had begun to lose confidence last season. Coming back from his October 2021 ACL tear on time in 2022, Farley started just one game last season. During the nine games for which Farley dressed, he played only 17% of Tennessee’s defensive snaps.

The Titans fired Jon Robinson just before news of Farley’s impending back surgery broke, with ownership indicating the team’s injury issues during the GM’s seven-year run had become a concern. A first-round pick who has been unable to stay on the field, Farley likely loomed as a central figure in the team’s mounting case against keeping Robinson, who had signed an extension earlier in 2022.

Multiyear starter Kristian Fulton, chosen in the 2020 second round, is once again on IR. The contract-year cover man missed 20 games from 2020-22 and will be shut down for the season’s remainder due to landing on IR last week. Tennessee has 2022 second-rounder Roger McCreary and UFA pickup Sean Murphy-Bunting in place as its top corners to close out this season. Farley can be moved to the 53-man roster at any point before Week 18, and it will be interesting to see if the team activates him after another extended absence. The Titans will decline Farley’s fifth-year option before the May deadline, and this near-season-long absence has dealt another blow to his career stock.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/20/23

December 20th, 2023 at 7:13pm CST by Ely Allen

Wednesday’s minor transactions:

Arizona Cardinals

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

  • Designated to return from IR: OL Alex Palczewski

New York Giants

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Updated 2024 NFL Draft Order

December 20th, 2023 at 1:41pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Panthers’ Week 15 win over the Falcons brought the Patriots and Cardinals, who each lost, one game closer to the No. 1 overall pick. New England’s weaker strength of schedule provides keeps Arizona in the No. 3 spot, while Washington — weeks away from a likely full-scale reboot — has lost five straight to move into position for its first top-five pick since 2020.

Early reports have the Bears more likely to draft Justin Fields‘ replacement than trading a top pick once again, but the Patriots and Cardinals are still in the running for what could well be the Caleb Williams draft slot. Much less drama would emerge if New England claimed the top pick, as the Patriots would be expected to draft the top QB prize. Arizona landing atop the draft for the second time in six years could produce a derby, with Kyler Murray‘s contract difficult (but not impossible) to move for new GM Monti Ossenfort. QB-needy teams may well be hoping the Cardinals land one of the top two spots, however, providing a potential gateway to a trade-up for Williams or Drake Maye.

The Raiders’ 63-21 demolition of the Chargers slid them down six spots compared to their position last week. The Packers also climbed eight spots from their slot going into Week 15. Green Bay has not held a top-11 draft choice since it drafted B.J. Raji in the 2009 first round; that came on the heels of Aaron Rodgers‘ first season at the helm. Jordan Love‘s QB1 debut season could still produce a playoff berth, however, and the rest of the NFC and AFC wild-card races remain tightly bunched.

Here is how the 2024 draft order looks with three regular-season games to play:

  1. Chicago Bears (via Panthers)
  2. New England Patriots: 3-11
  3. Arizona Cardinals: 3-11
  4. Washington Commanders: 4-10
  5. Chicago Bears: 5-9
  6. New York Giants: 5-9
  7. New York Jets: 5-9
  8. Los Angeles Chargers: 5-9
  9. Tennessee Titans: 5-9
  10. Atlanta Falcons: 6-8
  11. Green Bay Packers: 6-8
  12. Las Vegas Raiders: 6-8
  13. New Orleans Saints: 7-7
  14. Denver Broncos: 7-7
  15. Seattle Seahawks: 7-7
  16. Pittsburgh Steelers: 7-7
  17. Arizona Cardinals (via Texans)
  18. Buffalo Bills: 8-6
  19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 7-7
  20. Minnesota Vikings: 7-7
  21. Los Angeles Rams: 7-7
  22. Indianapolis Colts: 8-6
  23. Jacksonville Jaguars: 8-6
  24. Cincinnati Bengals: 8-6
  25. Kansas City Chiefs: 9-5
  26. Houston Texans (via Browns)
  27. Detroit Lions: 10-4
  28. Philadelphia Eagles: 10-4
  29. Miami Dolphins: 10-4
  30. Dallas Cowboys: 10-4
  31. Baltimore Ravens: 11-3
  32. San Francisco 49ers: 11-3

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/19/23

December 19th, 2023 at 7:22pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s practice squad moves:

Arizona Cardinals

  • Released: WR Daniel Arias

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Signed: QB E.J. Perry

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

New England Patriots

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Latest On Patriots’ Plans At HC

December 16th, 2023 at 10:40pm CST by Ben Levine

With Bill Belichick and the Patriots heading towards a likely divorce, much of the focus has been on the future Hall of Fame coach’s next landing spot. Of course, if the Patriots do decide to move on from the iconic leader of their franchise, they’ll have a massive hole to fill themselves.

As Ben Volin of the Boston Globe writes, it seems like the Patriots’ initial plan was to keep Belichick on board through the 2024 campaign. At that time, they’d hand the reigns to Jerod Mayo, who spurned HC interviews last offseason to stick around as New England’s de facto defensive coordinator. Of course, following a dreadful 2023 campaign, Robert Kraft and co. are clearly having a change of heart…and that might not bode well for Mayo’s chances of being Belichick’s successor.

Volin notes that Mayo will obviously remain a candidate for the assumed HC vacancy, but he won’t be the only candidate. This is partly due to Mayo’s brief coaching resume, and ownership might prefer to jump start their rebuild with a more established voice in the locker room.

Some pundits have suggested that Mike Vrabel could take over for his former coach. While some reporters have thrown cold water on that notion, sources told Volin that the Titans coach could be a real possibility for the Patriots. Of course, since Vrabel is under contract, the Titans would likely require compensation from the Patriots, with Volin suggesting Tennessee would seek a first-round pick in return. Dianna Russini of The Athletic still rejects the connection, with the reporter definitively stating that the Patriots aren’t trading for Vrabel.

Outside of Mayo and Vrabel, there haven’t been many coaches connected to the potential opening. In fact, the vacancy might not be all that appealing, with two agents telling Volin that they wouldn’t recommend the gig to their clients. A new head coach would have to fill a massive “power vacuum,” as one agent explained, and that would include implementing an entirely new offensive and defensive philosophy. On the flip side, one agent told Volin that the job would be desirable considering the success of the Kraft family.

Another option could see the Patriots sticking to the status quo, with Volin saying the “path of least resistance” is to keep Belichick on the sideline for another year. Since Belichick is still under contract, it seems unlikely the Patriots would outright fire him; they’d still owe Belichick the remainder of his deal and they wouldn’t recoup any value when he inevitably lands another job. If the Patriots don’t like their head coaching options and aren’t getting suitable offers for their coach, they may simply decide to keep Belichick around for at least another year. Jeff Howe writes that Kraft could also reevaluate Belichick’s future if the Patriots finish the season on a winning streak. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com is in agreement with Howe, writing that a firing appears to be the least likely outcome, and that a strong performance to close the season could keep Belichick in Foxborough. For what it’s worth, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com notes that the team is continuing to play hard for its HC.

Of course, this decision isn’t entirely in the Patriots’ hands. Belichick has a bit of leverage in the situation, and it sounds like he’s just about done with his time in New England. Per Volin, Belichick is tired of Kraft’s “meddling,” tension that started with the organization’s decision to trade Jimmy Garoppolo and extended to this offseason when the Patriots brought in Bill O’Brien to guide the offense.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/16/23

December 16th, 2023 at 9:09pm CST by Ely Allen

Today’s minor transactions and standard gameday elevations for the Sunday slate of games:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

San Francisco 49ers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Wilkinson returned to practice this week, and will be eligible to return to the lineup on Sunday given today’s activation. The addition of a starter up front will be welcomed by the Cardinals by giving them stability at the left guard spot in particular and by providing an upgrade in protection ahead of a matchup against the stout 49ers defensive front in general. The Cardinals now have four IR activations remaining.

Street was acquired from the Eagles at the trade deadline after he failed to find playing time this season. The 27-year-old has started all five of his appearances in Atlanta, however, racking up 14 tackles (including four for a loss) and one sack. Those numbers will help his free agent market this offseason, but a pectoral injury will sideline him for at least four weeks. If the Falcons fall short of the postseason, therefore, Street will not return in 2023.

McCain was a full-time starter with the Commanders over the past two seasons, but his release led to a one-year Giants agreement. The former fifth-rounder has 87 starts to his name, but he has been unable to carve out a role in New York’s secondary, playing only 19 defensive snaps. McCain has logged a 50% snap share on special teams, however, so his absence in the third phase will be notable if he is claimed off waivers or signed as a free agent by an interested team.

Titans Waive DL Teair Tart

December 16th, 2023 at 6:25pm CST by Adam La Rose

DECEMBER 16: The move is now official, per a team announcement. Tart will hit the waiver wire instead of seeing his RFA contract expire at the end of the season. It will be interesting to see how much interest is shown in him (either via teams putting in a claim or pursing him as a free agent). To fill Tart’s spot, Tennessee promoted wideout Mason Kinsey to the 53-man roster. The latter has played five games across his three seasons in the NFL, all with the Titans.

DECEMBER 15: Tension between the Titans and Teair Tart will result in an unceremonious exit. The veteran defensive lineman has been ruled out for Week 15 due to personal (rather than injury-related) reasons.

Veteran Titans beat writer Paul Kuharsky first reported Tennessee was set to move on from Tart after “season-long issues reached a breaking point.” Indeed, ESPN’s Turron Davenport confirms Tart has played his last game with the franchise. The 26-year-old will now head to waivers in a move which creates no dead money charge.

Tart joined the Titans as a UDFA in 2020, and he played sparingly during his rookie season. Since then, however, he has established himself as a key member of Tennessee’s defensive line rotation. The 26-year-old logged a snap share of 47% in the 2021 and ’22 seasons. His level of play in the latter campaign earned him a second-round RFA tender, and signing it locked him into a $4.3MM salary.

After Tart set new career highs in several categories last year, expectations were high for a follow-up and a resultant boost in free agent value. As Kuharsky notes, however, the Florida International alum’s conditioning and effort level have been a sore spot during the campaign. With his contract status looming over his immediate future, Tart has racked up 21 tackles (including eight for a loss) along with one sack while seeing an identical snap share to the past two seasons. Those figures have resulted in a PFF grade of 57.6, a stark regression from his career-best evaluation in 2022.

While the Titans’ run defense suffered in the games Tart missed, his absence was not as impactful as expected given his previous performances. Between that fact, and the team’s status as presumed sellers ahead of the trade deadline, Tart was floated as a trade candidate. No takers emerged on that front, but interested parties can now add him by putting in a claim. If he passes through waivers, Tart will be a free agent.

Today’s news leaves Tennessee without both Tart and All-Pro Jeffery Simmons along the defensive interior; the latter is set to miss a second straight game due to injury. Kyle Peko, meanwhile, is out for the season. Especially given the decision to move on from Tart, yesterday’s additions of Quinton Bohanna and Keondre Coburn to provide healthy bodies along the D-line make sense.

While the latter two are set to make their Titans debuts this week, Tart will turn his attention to his next chapter. A rebound in terms of performance with his next team, should he latch onto an active roster to close out the year, will set him up for free agency for the first time in his career.

Titans Poach Two From Practice Squads, Place Two On IR

December 13th, 2023 at 10:03pm CST by Ely Allen

The Titans made two pairs of roster moves today, according to NFL beat writer Paul Kuharsky, placing cornerback Kristian Fulton and defensive tackle Kyle Peko on injured reserve and signing defensive tackles Quinton Bohanna and Keondre Coburn to fill their spots on the active roster. Bohanna was signed from the Lions‘ practice squad, Coburn from the Chiefs‘.

The loss of Fulton is difficult, as he has been a starter for Tennessee at the position since his sophomore season. At the same time, though, Fulton has been a liability in the team’s secondary, taking a huge step back in play this year. According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Fulton settles in as the 112th-ranked cornerback out of 119 graded players. Absences on IR have become an annual occurrence for Fulton, who missed 10 games as a rookie in 2020, four games in 2021, and six games last year. He’s missed Monday’s win over the Dolphins and will now miss at least four more games in 2023.

Peko is unfortunately in a similar position as Fulton. He has served as a starter in Tennessee for most of the season, as well, but also grades out extremely poorly per PFF, ranking at 127th out of 131 interior defensive linemen.

At cornerback, the team will ask last year’s second-round pick Roger McCreary and undrafted rookie Eric Garror to step up in Fulton’s place. In Peko’s place, Tennessee could turn to Jaleel Johnson for more snaps, but new arrivals Bohanna and Coburn should get plenty of opportunities to step in and contribute.

Bohanna spent his first two years in Dallas, starting nine games in his sophomore season. After falling behind Johnathan Hankins and first-round rookie Mazi Smith on the depth chart, Bohanna was waived by the Cowboys and signed to the Lions’ practice squad. Detroit elevated him in three games this year, two of which he started, but couldn’t find a place for him on the active roster. The Titans, on the other hand, should give him an immediate chance to enter the rotation.

Coburn is a sixth-round rookie out of Texas. After initially making the 53-man roster in Kansas City, Coburn has bounced back and forth between the Chiefs’ and Broncos’ practice squads. His only game action has been a brief appearance in the Chiefs’ season-opening loss. In Tennessee, he’ll get a new chance to find his place on the depth chart and potentially contribute as a Titan.

Updated 2024 NFL Draft Order

December 13th, 2023 at 2:29pm CST by Sam Robinson

Two different teams have held the No. 1 overall pick in consecutive years since 2017. Amid a radical rebuild effort, the Browns carried the top pick into the 2017 and ’18 drafts. The Jaguars did the same in 2021 and ’22. It is possible the Bears will follow that up in back-to-back years. The big difference here would be the Bears traded the 2023 top choice and may unload the 2024 top pick for another windfall, depending on their evaluation of Justin Fields.

The Bears and Panthers’ March trade, giving Carolina access to Bryce Young, has become a seminal moment for both teams. As it stands now, Chicago holds two top-five picks. The Panthers are 1-12, giving the Bears a two-game lead on the Patriots and Cardinals for the top slot with four games left. Chicago finishing with the first overall selection, providing access to the quarterback of its choice, would create a big-picture decision for a Bears team that already passed on the 2023 quarterback class to stick with Fields — a QB the Ryan Poles regime did not draft. North Carolina’s Drake Maye has declared for the draft, while USC’s Caleb Williams is widely expected to follow suit.

A new Cardinals regime is also evaluating its QB, though Kyler Murray‘s $46.1MM-per-year contract (which runs through 2028) will be much harder to escape compared to Fields’. This creates an interesting scenario that will have teams who do not land two-two draft slots monitoring how Chicago and Arizona proceed. The Patriots are widely expected to pursue a quarterback in the draft, and they are likely to do so without Bill Belichick.

With gridlock forming in the AFC and NFC wild-card races, considerable movement will take place over the next month. The winner of the NFC South will likely lose several spots in the ’24 draft, as the Buccaneers did this year by winning the ’22 division title at 8-9. Here is how the draft order looks going into Week 15:

  1. Chicago Bears (via Panthers)
  2. New England Patriots: 3-10
  3. Arizona Cardinals: 3-10
  4. Washington Commanders: 4-9
  5. Chicago Bears: 5-8
  6. Las Vegas Raiders: 5-8
  7. New York Jets: 5-8
  8. New York Giants: 5-8
  9. Tennessee Titans: 5-8
  10. Los Angeles Chargers: 5-8
  11. Atlanta Falcons: 6-7
  12. New Orleans Saints: 6-7
  13. Seattle Seahawks: 6-7
  14. Los Angeles Rams: 6-7
  15. Denver Broncos: 7-6
  16. Arizona Cardinals (via Texans)
  17. Buffalo Bills: 7-6
  18. Cincinnati Bengals: 7-6
  19. Green Bay Packers: 6-7
  20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 6-7
  21. Indianapolis Colts: 7-6
  22. Minnesota Vikings: 7-6
  23. Pittsburgh Steelers: 7-6
  24. Houston Texans (via Browns)
  25. Kansas City Chiefs: 8-5
  26. Jacksonville Jaguars: 8-5
  27. Detroit Lions: 9-4
  28. Philadelphia Eagles: 10-3
  29. Miami Dolphins: 9-4
  30. Dallas Cowboys: 10-3
  31. San Francisco 49ers: 10-3
  32. Baltimore Ravens: 10-3
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